Didn’t see too many discussion on these 2 (or maybe bury in threads that I couldn’t find), just figure that I’ll show the size comparison between them if you were on the fence like I was thinking about upgrading. When I was in store and looking at 16 only, I knew the screen was much bigger, but now I have them both side by side it’s just comical how much more space I’m getting from 16 over 13. Yeah it’s much heavier and M1 in MBA is plenty powerful for me, but if you don’t intend to travel with MBP I feel it’s a great upgrade. The XDR screen on 16 is unbelievable. I will still keep MBA around for traveling, but it’s getting hard to look at small text on the 13. Hope this helps!
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MBA M1 vs MBP M1 16
- Thread starter pugxiwawa
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The 16" is hard for to picture as a portable computer. I'm sure there are people who need to have that sort of power and screen-size off-site.
I had a 15" 2010 MBP and it was a chunk. When I used it on a desk, I kept thinking of ways to plug in peripherals (keyboard, monitor and then mouse). Plus the sharp edges made it painful on which to type.
If I'm going to end up with a desktop Mac, a Mini is my choice (and budget).
For portable, my M1 Air is a perfect companion; small, light and cool.
Regardless, I hope you enjoy your computer; it's a beauty. These are just my thoughts.
I had a 15" 2010 MBP and it was a chunk. When I used it on a desk, I kept thinking of ways to plug in peripherals (keyboard, monitor and then mouse). Plus the sharp edges made it painful on which to type.
If I'm going to end up with a desktop Mac, a Mini is my choice (and budget).
For portable, my M1 Air is a perfect companion; small, light and cool.
Regardless, I hope you enjoy your computer; it's a beauty. These are just my thoughts.
All depends on your use case. I went from the slightly smaller MBP 16" Intel to the M1 Air. I could not be happier. If I needed more screen space I can connect the Air to my desktop monitor. But, I need portability more than screen space.
As someone who lugged a classic 15" MBP (2011) around Europe... they're portable.
But... not usable in transit on things like buses, aircraft, etc.
They're more portable from desk to desk. If you need to use a machine whilst in transit, go for a 13-14" machine.
Very insightful.
A lot of people on here like to act as if using any laptop larger than the 13” MBA is akin to carting a cheesegrater Mac Pro around with you the whole time.
Yeah some people just exaggerate.
The 15" is heavier, and larger - sure. But those things are obvious and the weight/size difference won't kill you when carrying it around.
But the big thing is that 15" or larger is simply too large to open up in a lot of situations due to things like aircraft tray tables being too small, being unwieldy on your lap, etc. It simply won't fit in those situations whereas a 13"-14" machine often will. Its only an extra inch or two, but those extra inches make a huge difference in confined spaces.
If you aren't planning to use the machine in those situations then either is fine.
But if you do think you might want to use your machine on a flight when not in business class - you are going to have a bad time with a 15-16" or larger machine, especially if the person in front tries to recline even a tiny amount. Worst case you may even end up with a damaged machine when the seat back tries to crush your screen between the table and the seat.
This is the situation where 13" machines (particularly the air) excel - sure they might not be quite as fast as a larger machine, but if you've got say 5-10 hours of flight time you otherwise couldn't use with the 15"-16" machine, that's a lot of extra time you can get back. It really depends on whether or not you need the performance more than the ability to work anywhere.
And this is precisely why I went the 14" Pro. Barely any performance trade off and it will still be usable in those situations.
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After using MBP 16 for a few days I think it’s pretty portable. Obviously won’t be as convenient as MBA, the new chunky design actually makes it easier to hold. I also have 12.9 iPad M1 with magic keyboard and to me that’s a better travel companion together with MBP 16.
Just for the kick, I got a new LG 32UN650-W 4k monitor to see how well it complements the MBP. You can see the black level between the two are night and day. I think the XDR on MBP 16 has ruined it for me, I don’t know if I can go back to regular monitor. Only if 32 Pro XDR Display is actually affordable…
Just for the kick, I got a new LG 32UN650-W 4k monitor to see how well it complements the MBP. You can see the black level between the two are night and day. I think the XDR on MBP 16 has ruined it for me, I don’t know if I can go back to regular monitor. Only if 32 Pro XDR Display is actually affordable…
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I'm now in the same predicament. No computer display I've ever seen compares to these laptops and even the 32" XDR isn't as good as these are.
Yeah I don't think a lot of people realise just how amazing these displays are.
You don't just need to see them in person at the desktop and think "oh ok looks the same". You need to really play with them a bit. Anyone checking them out should fire up some HDR video/photo content and also run some stuff making use of black backgrounds.
Black is properly black. Unlike every other portable I've ever used.
I think your contrast is way off on your LG. I agree that the MBP M1 14/16 displays are things of beauty, but I have the smaller 27" cousin of your LG 32" (LG 27UL850-W) and my contrast is nowhere near that bad.
I have been on a similar road...I got used to Retina displays
I want an ultrawide display but there are no Retina ones available.
And even if there are, it would probably cost a lot!
For some reason the display on the 14" is meh while the 16" for me is amazing!
Might just be because I have the Intel 16" and smaller displays don't impress me
I wondered about the contrast too. Thanks for posting the pic!
Having said that, the MBP screen looks pretty stunning.